by Kobe Bryant
“Still,” Rovi said, “let us help you.”
As a trio, their arms looped around one another, they began to make their way out of the tunnel. With every step, Pretia seemed to be coming back to herself. But it was slow going.
Now a new sound could be heard over the siren, the unmistakable roar of the approaching quicksand.
Rovi flinched. There was no doubt that the river was close by, flooding the tunnels at their backs. He and Vera exchanged worried glances.
“Hurry,” Vera urged. The three friends, still linked together, broke into a jog.
The roar grew louder. The sand was closing in. Rovi could feel it—a cool and looming pressure behind him.
He and Vera let go of Pretia as the three of them sprinted full tilt through the tunnels. They were in lockstep for the first few minutes, but then Pretia began to lag. Rovi reached back and grabbed for her arm, pulling her along with him. After a hundred feet, she fell back again.
Rovi looked over his shoulder and stopped to let Pretia catch up. The instant he did so, he saw the River of Sand crashing around a corner of the tunnel.
“Run!”
The friends ran. Rovi could see Vera in front of him, sprinting away at full speed.
He could see a circle of light up ahead and the glimmering water of the river Durna.
Vera had made it through the tunnel, with Rovi a split second behind her. His feet pounded the ground. He risked another glance over his shoulder, even though he knew it would cost him time. Pretia had fallen behind again. And the river was catching up. He could see it close on her heels.
He reached back. He grabbed Pretia’s hand and began to pull her forward, dragging her the last ten feet to the mouth of the tunnel.
The river was roaring in his ears. He could feel it right behind them. The entrance was in reach, but Rovi knew he had to jump if he was going to beat the River of Sand out of the tunnel. With one final effort, he leaped clear of the tunnel, through the entrance, and free of the rushing quicksand. He tossed himself to the side, flattening himself against the wall along the riverbank at the precise moment the quicksand crashed through the tunnel’s mouth.
Then he looked down at his empty hand. Pretia’s fingers had slipped through his.
She’d been swallowed by the River of Sand.
27
PRETIA
A REALIZATION
Pretia had gained strength and momentum as she’d sprinted through the tunnel. The reunion with her shadow self had restored her, but it hadn’t been enough. She could feel the River of Sand at her back. It was cold and clammy, but also powerful. She was aware of the sheer force that was chasing her. She also knew that she couldn’t outrun it. She would be swamped by the quicksand, and there was nothing she could do.
Rovi had grasped her hand. But Pretia hadn’t been able to hold on as she felt the wave of sand begin to close in. She held her breath, ready to be swallowed. The river crashed onto her shoulders. It broke over her body. But then she began to rise. Instead of sinking into the River of Sand and being drowned inside it, Pretia was rising to the top of it. She felt her grana working with the power of the river.
Before Pretia knew what she was doing, she was on top of the river, as if she were bodysurfing on the waves of the Rhodan Islands. She pulled herself up further, managing to get to her feet so she was standing on top of the river. She held her hands out to each side for balance and control.
And like that, standing upright, as if the river was under her command and not the other way around, Pretia rode the River of Sand right out of the tunnel and into the fresh Phoenician air.
She barely had time to register what was happening. The tidal wave of sand carried her across the river Durna, where she slid off her improbable conveyance and onto the opposite bank. Then the wave she had been riding crashed down, flooding the river Durna, turning the freshwater river into a torrent of quicksand.
There was no river water visible anymore, just sand that was flowing fast and furious, roaring as it went. Pretia could easily imagine how it would continue out of the city and return to the dry riverbeds she’d seen in the desert.
Pretia stood stunned, unsure of how to understand what she had just done. How had she ridden the River of Sand? It had taken her breath away. It more than made up for all the times her grana had been restricted or questioned. Her grana had helped her do something impossible. No, it had helped her do two impossible things—rescue the Star Stealers and surf the River of Sand.
Pretia gulped the sweet night air. This was the first moment of pure joy and exhilaration she’d experienced since coming to Phoenis. In fact, this was the first moment she remembered enjoying using her grana since . . . since . . . well, she couldn’t actually remember.
She looked across the flowing quicksand to the far side. Rovi, Vera, and Fortunus stood on the opposite bank with the last group of Star Stealers that Pretia had carried across from Hafara.
“Pretia!” Rovi was waving her over. He pointed at the nearby bridge that she could use to cross. “Hurry!”
To her surprise, Pretia found she could indeed hurry. Somehow, the river had mostly restored her. Or maybe it was her delight at using her grana that had restored her. Pretia sprinted to the other bank.
Her friends and the Star Stealers were looking at her with awestruck expressions on their faces. Even Fortunus looked a bit stunned.
“How . . . how . . .” Vera stammered.
“I don’t know,” Pretia admitted.
“You made it,” Gita said. “I’m so glad you made it.” She lowered her voice. “I’m sorry I mistrusted you.”
“No,” Pretia replied. “I’m sorry.”
“But you saved us.” Raki, the youngest Star Stealer, had taken her hand. “What are you sorry for?”
A lump swelled in Pretia’s throat as she looked down at Raki. Where to begin? There were so many things she needed to apologize to the Star Stealers for that it overwhelmed her. “I’m sorry for everything you have suffered as citizens of Epoca. You deserve more.”
She looked at the group gathered around Fortunus. How could Phoenis treat kids this way? How could Epoca? How could her parents? The thought turned her stomach. When she was Queen of Epoca, nothing like this would happen.
“Pretia,” Rovi said, taking her by the shoulders, “are you okay?” His eyes were wider than she’d ever seen, and he was nodding his head frantically as if willing her to answer quickly.
“That was amazing,” Vera said, the awestruck look still on her face. “And I’ve seen you do some amazing things.”
“That river was made by the gods, and you can control it,” Rovi said. “Your grana is—”
“Don’t.” Pretia held up her hand. She’d had enough of people trying to describe or classify her grana. “Even I don’t understand my grana.” Whatever allowed her to control the river was the same thing that made her grana threatening to others.
“Pretia Praxis-Onera.”
Pretia turned at the sound of Fortunus’s voice.
“These Star Stealers tell me you have saved them in a way that not a single person, child or adult—in Epoca or anywhere else in the world—could have done. It seems that you are, indeed, the Child of Hope.”
“I hate that name,” Pretia said. “I don’t want to bring my parents’ sort of hope to the people of Epoca. They only hope on behalf of Somni and Relia.”
“Well,” Fortunus said with a serious smile, “you have brought hope to the Star Stealers. They will never forget that.”
Pretia considered the group assembled around Fortunus, his praise echoing in her ears. She had lived up to her name. She had served her people.
“Now we have to go,” Fortunus continued. “The river is loose and the guards will be on us soon. Gita insisted on waiting to make sure you were all right. By now Issa should be at the Moon Palace with the
rest of the Star Stealers.”
“Pretia!” Vera tugged on her hand. “We also need to go.”
Pretia turned and looked at her friend. She had no idea what Vera was talking about.
“We can’t be late,” Vera insisted. “We have to get ready for the relay.”
Pretia looked at Fortunus. “Where will you go?” Pretia asked.
“We will begin our journey to the outlands. There are people who will harbor us along the way. When it is safe, I will lead the Star Stealers to join a large group of Orphic People who have gathered in the outlands, where they can be free. My hope is that one day our people can be part of Epoca, welcome to participate in all your traditions,” Fortunus said. “But for now we will build a life far away from the rule of Dreamers and Realists.”
Pretia gazed down at the river Durna bubbling with quicksand. She could just make out the gates that led from the Lower City to the widespread desert. It would be an unforgiving journey.
“Vera’s right, Pretia. You need to start heading back for the race. The people of Epoca are waiting,” Fortunus said.
The race. The relay. The Junior Epics. All of it seemed so remote and distant since she’d rescued the Star Stealers. But now she had to shift her focus. She had risked everything for this race. Game time was approaching.
“We have to go,” Rovi insisted. “We can’t be disqualified.”
“There’s a whole stadium waiting to see what wonders you’ll do next,” Fortunus said. “A whole nation waiting on your performance. But, Rovi, your invitation to join us still stands.”
“I’m sorry, Fortunus, I told you earlier: I’m a Dreamer now,” Rovi said. “And I was a Dreamer before. It’s what my father would have wanted. He left my Grana Book at Ecrof for a reason, so one day I might have the chance of being a Dreamer again.”
“I understand,” Fortunus said, a smile playing at his lips. “I foresee much Epic Glory in your future.”
Pretia looked at her friends. She looked at Fortunus and the scraggly band of Star Stealers. She looked up, taking in the golden grandeur of the Upper City rising from the tangle of the Lower City. She looked in the opposite direction, watching the released River of Sand flowing away from Phoenis into the wild desert.
“I wish I could go with you,” Pretia said. “But I have a duty to my house and my teammates.” She paused, and for the first time she understood how she might actually live up to her name: the Child of Hope. “And I have a duty to you to make Epoca a better world for Star Stealers—and for all the Orphic People.”
Suddenly, ruling Epoca didn’t seem so bad. Her rule didn’t have to be like her parents’. She could rule with her own important mission, her own goals. If she returned to the games and raced, she would have to eventually submit to her parents’ command that she return to Castle Airim and give up sports. But at least she could do that knowing that she could work to make Epoca better for people like Raki and Gita, who’d suffered so much.
Gita took Pretia’s hand. “You have a race to run,” she said. “I hope you show everyone the amazing things you can do.” Then she wrapped her arms around Pretia. “I hope we meet again sometime.”
“Me too,” Pretia said.
Vera tugged on Pretia’s arm. “We have to go,” she urged. “Now.”
Pretia backed away from the Star Stealers. Fortunus clapped his hands, and the scraggly band began to head out of the city. Pretia and her friends watched them for a moment. Just before they disappeared from sight, she saw Fortunus raise his hand toward the heavens as if plucking a star from the sky. Rovi returned the salute. And then the Star Stealers were gone.
“Okay,” Pretia said. “Let’s do it. One last race.” At the moment, it seemed impossible to summon the emotional energy to compete. But she had risked everything for this final event. She would dig deep for a reserve of inspiration.
“For Junior Epic Glory,” Vera said.
“For Dreamer Glory,” Rovi said.
“And,” Pretia added, “for personal triumph. I want to see what I can do—and I want everyone else to see it, too.”
“I think I can get us up to the stadium undetected,” Rovi said, “but then what? How do we get Pretia into the race without her parents discovering her?”
“You guys are going to have to stay hidden, while I find Eshe,” Vera said. “She can sign in for all of us, and we’ll just show up on the starting line at go time.”
“That’s a huge risk,” Rovi said.
“Do you have a better idea?” Pretia asked.
Rovi shook his head.
In silence, he led them out of the Lower City and into the Upper City. Despite having recovered since being separated from her split self across the River of Sand, Pretia’s body was still tired. Her legs felt leaden, and her breath sounded ragged in her ears. She tried to hide her condition from her friends and keep pace. But it was a struggle.
Soon they could see the Temple of Arsama and the Crescent Stadium rising in the distance.
“Let’s hide by the Epic Coaches,” Pretia said. “That way we can enter quickly through the athletes’ entrance.”
“I’ll find Eshe and then keep an eye on the races so I can signal you two when it’s time to line up,” Vera said. “But do me a favor,” she added. “Don’t just sit around and wait. Try and warm up.”
“Vera,” Pretia said. “I think I’m warm enough. I’ve been exercising for the last two hours straight.”
Vera thought for a moment. “Well, okay. Don’t get cold, then.”
Rovi and Pretia locked eyes and tried not to laugh.
They had almost arrived at the stadium. Pretia’s heart was racing as they drew closer to the coaches parked near the athletes’ entrance. She pivoted her head this way and that, hoping no one noticed her presence.
This was it. This was her last chance to race and demonstrate her grana. This might be her last chance to prove herself as an athlete. She needed to push herself to her limit and beyond.
They slipped between a row of coaches. Rovi tapped on their doors, searching for one that was unlocked.
“I’ll force one open if I have to,” he said. “But I’d rather not.”
“Hurry,” Pretia said. She was growing more and more anxious around the sounds and cheers from the Crescent Stadium. She was so close to being able to reveal herself . . . but also in the most danger of discovery since she’d run away.
Rovi was rattling the door of a smaller van. “This one is locked but improperly. I think I can get it open.”
Pretia watched, her anxiety rocketing, as Rovi jimmied the door open. “Got it,” he said.
“Get inside, you two,” Vera commanded.
Rovi stepped into the van.
Pretia prepared to follow.
“There you are!”
Pretia jumped, knocking into the side of the van. The game was over.
“I’ve been looking everywhere for you guys.”
Pretia’s heart was racing so fast it took her a second to process that it was Eshe who had appeared in front of her.
“We’re about to be disqualified! You weren’t on the transport. Where have you been?”
“It doesn’t matter,” Vera said.
“Yes it does,” Eshe snapped. “We have ten minutes to sign in, or we’ll be disqualified. Tell me where you were.”
“We were somewhere we weren’t supposed to be, Eshe, and the less you know about it the better.”
“You’re not acting like teammates,” Eshe grumbled.
“We’re here to race, aren’t we?” Vera said.
“I guess,” Eshe said.
“And we’re here to win,” Pretia added.
“Then I guess you’ll need these,” Eshe muttered. She held out a small sports bag. “I grabbed racing gear for you and Vera. I had a feeling you would need it.”
&n
bsp; “Wow!” Vera cried. “Good thinking. I hadn’t even considered that.”
Eshe couldn’t hide how pleased she was with Vera’s praise. She turned to Rovi. “Sorry, I couldn’t snag yours. I didn’t want to risk sneaking into the boys’ residence. Unlike you guys,” she said with a pointed look, “I’m not comfortable breaking the rules and jeopardizing my team’s outcome.”
“I have some extra clothes in my backpack,” Pretia offered.
“That’s okay,” Rovi said. “I’m wearing my race gear. It’s a little dirty and sandy, but it will do.”
“Thanks, Eshe,” Vera said. “Now, you and I should go register. Pretia and Rovi are going to wait here until the race.”
A confused look passed across Eshe’s face.
“My parents don’t want me to race,” Pretia explained. “If they know where I am, they’ll pull me.”
“And we need Pretia to guarantee victory,” Rovi added.
“Oh,” Eshe said. “I was just wondering how you two are going to warm up sitting in this van.”
Pretia and Rovi exploded into laughter.
“What’s so funny?” Eshe asked.
“I have no idea,” Vera said. “But let’s go. I’m sure they’ll figure out how to stay loose.” She looked at Pretia. “Keep your eyes on the athletes’ entrance. When you see me wave, hurry into the stadium and head straight for the starting line. Do not stop for any reason.”
“Got it,” Pretia said.
She and Rovi got into the van and watched Eshe and Vera head inside. Rovi kept watch out the window while Pretia changed into her competition gear. “I need to relax a little,” she said. “All right?”
“Are you going to be okay to race?” he wondered.
“Of course,” Pretia said. She slouched in the seat and closed her eyes. She was exhausted both mentally and physically. She needed to sleep. But she would take what she could get until game time.
As she drifted off into a light doze, the image in her Grana Book danced behind her closed eyelids—the twisting road through the two mountains, one of which represented each of her parents. She saw the slight cloud cover on each mountain, the blue and purple hues muting their peaks, and the brilliant, golden fire at the end. She imagined that gold meant victory was waiting, but what if it meant something else? What if she had been wrong about what awaited her?
